Jason Kenney, now appalled by the politics of personal destruction, spent his glory days running with the guys who perfected it.

United Conservative Party Leader Jason Kenney, pictured Aug. 23, 2018, at the Conservative policy convention in Halifax. Where was the new and genteel Kenney when he recently opined that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had 'the political depth of a finger bowl,' and couldn’t absorb 'a briefing note longer than a cocktail napkin,' writes Michael Harris. The Hill Times photograph by Samantha Wright Allen

HALIFAX—At one level, the latest tribulations of Jason Kenney are drop dead funny.

Gerald Butts has removed himself from the daily political grind of strategizing how to keep the Liberals in power. But observers say it's unlikely he will be consigned to watch the campaign unfold from the sidelines.

SNC-Lavalin risks a takeover if it's convicted. But aside from likely outrage in Quebec, Ottawa can find other builders for its infrastructure plans if the company is banned from bidding on federal contracts, experts say

The Quebec company had extensive access to government ministers and top staffers, and was the only organization registered to lobby for allowing deferred prosecution agreements for white collar crimes.